A cleaner simpler style of play

ShootingArts

ShootingArts

Smorg is giving St Peter the 7!
Silver Member
I've been watching the ladies playing nine ball the last few days. I can't give names, guess my eyes are getting worse than I thought all the names look like chicken scratch to me, but it seems to me that a lot of the ladies are playing a simpler game. Less cue ball movement, shooting softer, and very clean neat strokes. Some variations obviously but I'm wondering if I am seeing the results of the training system several of the countries in Asia are reported to have now?

Whatever is going on, it seems to be working. Anyone else notice this seeming shift in style of play?


Hu
 
I've noticed in the style of play during local tournaments (Fast Eddie's, Houston Open).

It's also very nice to watch. Sometimes simplicity is best.
 
I have not been able to watch or play much since I started to remodel the bathrooms in my house. In fact I should not even be typing this right now:( From My own experience I play my best when I keep it simple, I like to spin the rock and love to use multiple rails for shape. I can do this great on my best days but those don't come around much unless I keep in stroke through practice. Concentrating on being on the correct side of every shot and taking longer shots works better for me then trying to get perfect shape on fast cloth.
 
KISS IS the word.

The shorter distance the cue ball has to travel, the shorter distance for the object ball to the pocket, getting on the right side of this shot, so that the cue ball does not have to travel so far to get to the next ball, etc.

Simpler is good. Fewer chances for mistakes.

But remember: They are playing on excellent tables with fast cloth and good rails. Fast cloth and good rails make for an easier game.
 
Cuebuddy said:
I have not been able to watch or play much since I started to remodel the bathrooms in my house. In fact I should not even be typing this right now
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At least not until the toilets are in. :grin-square:


Hu, good call. The girls certainly play a simpler game than say, Rafael Martinez. :wink: Seeing that ESPN-C runs a lot of the old WPBA stuff, I'd have to see if it has changed on that tour in recent times, I'm not sure. For instance, I've always thought that Alison and Karen were very efficient in their pattern/position play and they go back a few years.
 
Seems a bit more minimalist

DogsPlayingPool said:
At least not until the toilets are in. :grin-square:


Hu, good call. The girls certainly play a simpler game than say, Rafael Martinez. :wink: Seeing that ESPN-C runs a lot of the old WPBA stuff, I'd have to see if it has changed on that tour in recent times, I'm not sure. For instance, I've always thought that Alison and Karen were very efficient in their pattern/position play and they go back a few years.
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I have watched three or four matches and it just seems a bit more minimalist. Looks a lot like old school players that cut their teeth on straight pool more than the WPBA matches on ESPN-C which I do watch some too. The snooker players do play more this style and always have but then I've always thought that snooker and 14.1 have a lot in common in style of play. With a little luck playing snooker you stay in tight on the red balls for most of the game much like a straight pool player working the balls mostly in the foot pockets.

Hu
 
I haven't had time to watch.

My take is: Short, tight strokes are key.. imo, which isn't base on excellence but study. Minimize the chance for error. As a senior amature I need, NEED, to use a short accurate stroke because my muscles are getting tired and tend to do some things that I don't want or instruct the to do. So, short back swing. Stop. Smooooooth forward with fist going to chest and tip to cloth. EVERY TIME.
 
I'm more and more having to minimize things to go wrong!

JimS said:
I haven't had time to watch.

My take is: Short, tight strokes are key.. imo, which isn't base on excellence but study. Minimize the chance for error. As a senior amature I need, NEED, to use a short accurate stroke because my muscles are getting tired and tend to do some things that I don't want or instruct the to do. So, short back swing. Stop. Smooooooth forward with fist going to chest and tip to cloth. EVERY TIME.
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Jim,

I'm in the same boat. I figure the less to go wrong the better. I've never been fond of running the cue ball through traffic unless I absolutely had to either. I'd rather have a working angle with very little risk to get it than a more perfect angle but having to travel the cue ball through traffic to get it.

Well a few hours to go and I'll be watching the finals of the women's world championship and checking out which is the winning style, . . . . between naps that is! :grin:

Hu
 
Good thread Mr Hu!

ShootingArts said:
I've been watching the ladies playing nine ball the last few days. I can't give names, guess my eyes are getting worse than I thought all the names look like chicken scratch to me, but it seems to me that a lot of the ladies are playing a simpler game. Less cue ball movement, shooting softer, and very clean neat strokes. Some variations obviously but I'm wondering if I am seeing the results of the training system several of the countries in Asia are reported to have now?

Whatever is going on, it seems to be working. Anyone else notice this seeming shift in style of play?


Hu
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Besides what's already been said, I also think that of the men pros, Souquet shoots this style also.

Tracing this "style" of shooting back to it's genesis, the real old time 14.1 players (Taberski, Greenleaf, Crane and Mosconi) perfected this style.

Other great supermen of 14.1 from that era (Erwin Rudolph, Andrew Ponzi, Jimmy Caras and later, Lassiter and Balsis) were exceptional long shot makers because unlike the aforementioned group, they often got a little out of line, ala Ortmann of today's players.
 
Watch golf, tennis etc the men's game always has more power than the women.

I know Men and Women games are always being hyped as competing on a even field but there is a difference.

Its like congress every few years trying to score votes with women by saying women should be in combat arms. Sorry for every one you name there's thousands who can't.
 
All too often, there is a tendency among pool players to make the game much more difficult than it really is. Why go 3 rails to get position when a stop shot will get the job done? Why draw the cue ball 8 feet when a simple follow shot will rebound to the same location? There is no need to overcomplicate things. When it comes right down to it, we are moving a ball around a table with a stick! The more complicated we try to make it, the more opportunities we have for something to go wrong.

Steve
 
pooltchr said:
All too often, there is a tendency among pool players to make the game much more difficult than it really is. Why go 3 rails to get position when a stop shot will get the job done? Why draw the cue ball 8 feet when a simple follow shot will rebound to the same location? There is no need to overcomplicate things. When it comes right down to it, we are moving a ball around a table with a stick! The more complicated we try to make it, the more opportunities we have for something to go wrong.

Steve
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Good post!
 
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